Agriculture heals the wounds of conflict

Many developing countries are recovering from different humanitarian crises: genocide in Cambodia, civil war in Rwanda, famine in North Korea, conflict in Palestine and Afghanistan, the tsunami in Indonesia. A new report suggests that agricultural development can help countries to recover from violent conflicts and natural disasters.

Poverty is increasingly recognised as one of the key causes of conflict. Poverty breeds frustration, driving young people into banditry and gang violence. Hunger and hopelessness have triggered recent instability in Haiti and the conflicts in Rwanda and Sierra Leone. Poverty also increases vulnerability to natural disasters. The homes of many poor people cannot withstand hurricanes and earthquakes. They are often built on flood-prone land. Enduring the worst of each disaster pushes poor people further into poverty.

Research from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) documents three decades of agricultural development work in 47 countries. In many developing countries, poverty is greatest in rural areas. Agricultural development enables poor farmers to earn higher incomes and poor consumers to buy cheaper food. This means more money and resources are available to invest in infrastructure, giving communities greater protection against potential natural disasters.

Research is necessary to rebuild countries affected by conflict or natural disasters. It increases understanding of income generating activities, community needs and values, markets, cropping systems, natural resources and the successes and failures of previous policies. Research can help to develop new policies and technology that is more effective. It also connects emergency action with long-term development, reducing future vulnerability to hazards.

The report shows that ‘research for development’ can reduce the impacts of conflicts and disasters in five ways:

• Alleviating hunger by rebuilding seed and food systems (for example restoring rice production in Cambodia after the Khmer Rouge genocide).
• Safeguarding and restoring agricultural diversity (for example the use of gene banks to restore bean varieties lost during conflict in Rwanda).
• Rebuilding human and institutional capacities (for example building research institutions in East Timor).
• Reducing future vulnerability to crises (for example increasing Vitamin A intake for refugees in Uganda by introducing orange-fleshed sweet potato).
• Making relief aid more effective and efficient (for example using Geographical Information Systems to direct herders to optimum pastures in Afghanistan).

CGIAR has also helped many aid agencies become more effective in crises. For example, the ‘Seeds of Hope’ project in Rwanda broke with the tradition of importing emergency shipments of seed. Instead, the project brought researchers and non-governmental organisations together to identify appropriate local seed sources for different regions. This got the best seed to the neediest people more quickly than imports.

The report identifies four key principles to maximise the benefits of agricultural development in regions affected by conflict and natural disasters:

• use a knowledge-based approach to make relief assistance more efficient, effective and targeted
• offer long-term support to agricultural research that contributes to poverty reduction
• ensure continuous partnerships with aid agencies
• use research as a preventative measure against disaster and conflict, rather than as a response.

Source(s):
‘Healing Wounds: How the International Centres of the CGIAR Help Rebuild Agriculture in Countries Affected by Conflicts and Natural Disasters’, Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), by Surendra Varma and Mark Winslow, 2004 Full document.

Funded by: Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)

id21 Research Highlight: 23 November 2005

Further Information:
Surendra Varma
Communication, Documentation and Information Services
International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
P.O. Box 5466
Aleppo
Syria

Tel: +963 21 2213433
Fax: +963 21 2213490
Contact the contributor: s.varma@cgiar.org

Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)

Other related links:
'Water access in Ethiopia – can conflict be avoided?'

'Exploring the causes of armed conflict in Africa'

'Using local seed systems for agricultural disaster recovery'

'Reducing natural disaster risk to protect communities and their development'

'Putting disaster risk reduction at the heart of development'